Organic photodetectors based on supramolecularnanostructures

Self‐assembly of semiconducting (macro)molecules enables the development ofmaterials with tailored‐made properties which could be used as active compo-nents for optoelectronics applications. Supramolecular nanostructures combinethe merits of soft matter and crystallinematerials: They are flexible yet highlycrystalline, and they can be processed with low‐cost solution methods. Photo-detectors are devices capable to convert alight input into an electrical signal. Toachieve high photoresponse, the photogenerated charge carriers should betransported efficiently through the self‐assembled nanostructures to reach theelectrodes; this can be guaranteed via optimalπ–electron overlapping betweenadjacent conjugated molecules. Moreover, because of the high surface‐to‐bulkratio, supramolecular nanostructures are prone to enhance exciton dissociation.These qualities make supramolecular nanostructures perfect platforms for pho-toelectric conversion. This review highlights the most enlightening recent stra-tegies developed for the fabrication of high‐performance photodetectors based onsupramolecular nanostructures. We introduce the key figure‐of‐merit parametersand working mechanisms of organic photodetectors based on single componentsand p–n heterojunctions. In particular, we describe new methods to devise un-precedented planar and vertical devices to ultimately realize highly integrated andflexible photodetectors. The incorporation of ordered mesoscopic supramolecularnanostructures into macroscopic optoelectronic devices will offer great promisefor the next generation of multifunctional and multiresponsive devices